Ready to set out to the restaurant Maximus reserved, Valerie instructed Frankie, who would be behind the wheels, to check the brakes, making sure they were okay, and discovered they had been tampered with.
"Tsk, he's not afraid that he'll eventually be pointed out as the culprit with these repeated attempts," Valerie remarked as they made their way to another car.
She dressed simply and tied her hair in a ponytail just like an average individual you'd see on a daily basis. Pants, boots, a face cap, and a nosemask, hiding her face carefully. Let's say not too average but she looked different from her usual style.
She also wore shades, hiding the very trait that would point her out to be a Ross. Her red eyes.
"I'll go in with you," Frankie said as Valerie got out of the car but Valerie shook her head and refused.
"What would be the point of me wearing this get-up, if you're going to get all their attention on me?" She asked. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. Just wait for me in the parking lot."
She shut the door and faced the restaurant. It was a five-star restaurant but she chose to dress simply. If she had worn her extravagant clothes, she would definitely attract unwanted attention.
'I'm a bit early but I hoped I could eat something before he came so this is fine.' she thought to herself.
Just as she was about to enter the restaurant, she found an old man standing at the entrance, staring at the door.
On a normal day, Valerie would choose not to care but with how this old man had his eyebrows twitching every few seconds, she wondered if something was bothering him.
He wasn't wearing anything extravagant but wasn't dressed too simply either so she wondered what he was doing.
The old man noticed Valerie staring at him and turned to look at her. Instinctively, she looked away, avoiding eye contact.
'He didn't notice, did he?' She wondered and turned her head to see, only to find him right standing next to her. It gave her a bit of a fright and she stepped back. "Um..."
"Young lady." The old man called and from his tone, she could tell he was educated. But as he spoke further, she noticed he wasn't very educated, seeing as there were a few mispronounced words. "Did you forget your wallet too? Are you hoping for someone to help you out?"
"Oh." Valerie exclaimed and asked, "You forgot your wallet?"
"Sadly." He sighed. "I wanted to eat something extravagant but I forgot my wallet holding my card and my phone is down as well. I've come a long way, going back just feels regretful."
Valerie observed this old man carefully. He was quite pitiful.
"Then," she pursed her lips. "Would you mind eating with me?"
"Oh?"
'Max isn't here yet so this should be fine.' she smiled. 'I don't usually care but I feel helping this old man is of utmost priority.'
"Are you sure about this, young lady?" The old man asked and she nodded. She stretched her hand and asked,
"Would you mind me helping you? I'm not that good of a person but if it's to share a meal with someone, I think I can do that much."
"Do you know who I am, young lady?" He asked as he took her hand. She helped him hold the cane and asked,
"Does it matter?"
The old man was shocked. She didn't know him? Then why go so far as to help him?
"If you tell me who you are, I might just make you pay me back for the meal." She teased. "And if you discover who I am, you'll probably hate me. I'm pretty popular in a bad way. So it's better that you don't know who I am."
"Are you a serial killer?" He asked and a stunned Valerie laughed.
"No. I'm not that bad."
"Then you're normal. Every single person has one or two bad things that they did in this life." He assured and placed his hand on hers. "I guess since you're hiding your face, you must really not want to be seen. Don't worry, I won't ask further."
"You're such a cool old man." Valerie suddenly said and the old man smiled.
"I'm quite used to those words."
Valerie got a table for two and asked the old man to order whatever he wanted and the bills were on her.
"Are you sure you don't want to get compensated? I have quite the appetite." He said, but Valerie simply shook her head.
"That makes two of us. Don't worry, eat as much as you want." She said and ordered from the menu. The old man did the same and in no time, the table was filled with a lot of delicacies. "You're no joke, old man. Let's dig in, shall we?"
She took off her shades and then removed one ear of her nose mask, leaving it hanging on her other ear. The old man was finally able to see the face of the lady who offered to help him despite not knowing who he was.
'Red eyes.' he thought in bewilderment. 'I see.' he began to eat.
Halfway through the meal, Valerie's phone rang. She picked it up, excused herself, and answered her call.
"Where are you? Your assistant said you had gone in a while ago." Max said from his side. He sounded irritated but it couldn't be helped. He was the one who came late.
"Yes, I got it, you've arrived. Don't worry, I'm in the building." She said, quite calmly compared to how she had been with the old man. "You're the one who's late." She added, darting her eyes aside.
"No, you're the early one. Now, if you don't come up from wherever you are, I'll have to make an announcement and blow your cover." He threatened and she got up from her chair, alarmed.
"You... Seriously, have you gone crazy?"
He suddenly cut the call and she glared at her phone. He was definitely able to do such a thing. She shouldn't have come here in the first place.
Why did he have to be so unreasonable?
"It seems you had a prior engagement?" The old man asked and she looked down.